sandy strikes. the historic superstorm lives up to its billing as it crashes ashore the east coast causing chaos with deadly results. >> we knew that this was going to be a very dangerous storm. and the storm has met our expect expectations. and the worst of the weather has come. >> the powerful system punishes the coastline with record-breaking storm surges. >> we had waves as high as light poles down on the boardwalk. >> leaving millions in the dark and stranding travelers from coast to coast. >> sounds like i'm going to be captain all the way through. >> the storm knocking the final days of the presidential campaign offcourse. >> it's affected a lot of families. >> i think it will take a long time for us to clean up.

>> this is the "cbs morning news" for tuesday, october 30, 2012. good morning. good to be with us. i'm terrell brown. we begin with sandy, no longer a hurricane. she's now a post-tropical cyclone. still doing damage as she moves inland. so far the mega storm has killed 16 people in seven states. an estimated 5.7 million people are without power and it could become one of the most expensive natural disasters in u.s. history, with damages running between $10 and $20 billion. here in new york last night, amateur video caught a massive explosion at con edison substation. the blast knocked out power to tens of thousands in lower manhattan. randall pinkston has more. >> reporter: sandy roared ashore

south of atlantic city, new jersey, monday evening, packing sustained wind of 80 mile an hour with gusts over 100 miles an hour. the storm blew out windows and flooded streets up and down the east coast. storm cut electricity to more than 2 million homes and businesses. this is video of a power substation exploding in new york. >> we knew that this was going to be a very dangerous storm. the storm has met our expectations. >> reporter: new york city is all but shut down. the powerful storm surge from hurricane sandy pushed waters of the hudson river through the sea wall and onto the walkway. a record storm surge sent tidal water into a major traffic tunnel linking manhattan and brooklyn. also causes a high-rise crane to collapse, left damaging 1,000 feet over midtown, forcing the evacuation of several buildings. new york university medical center was evacuated after their backup generator failed. dozens of ambulances took patients to other hospitals. sandy is combining with the winter storm and will continue to cause trouble and damage for days.

>> there's been extraordinarily close coordination between state, federal and local governments. and so we're confident that the assets are prepositioned for an effective response in the aftermath of the storm. >> reporter: with sandy expected to affect the northeast through thursday, that response could take some time. randall pinkston, cbs news, new york. >> ines ferre lowering us from lower manhattan. i know you were in that location right around the same spot yesterday morning. if you topper give us a comparison, what was it like yesterday before the storm hit, what is it like now? what do you see? >> reporter: well, certainly much calmer right now. the waters behind me, the hudson river, much calmer than what it was yesterday. and water has receded. the surge had come up above the sea wall in battery park city. that was one of the concerns authorities had, was that the surge would be so high that it would overflow, flooding this area. and it did part of battery park

city. the good news is that that water has been receding but this southern part of manhattan is pretty much shut down right now because there is no power. we lost power last night here. and right now, the city -- the streets are completely dark. when we were driving down here, it was pretty eerie driving down here. totally, totally dark in southern manhattan. deserted. however, you do see police cars in almost every street because there is no light. it's completely in the dark. >> wind and rain was a big concern with this storm. the even bigger concern was storm surge and it ended up being record-breaking, so much so that it flooded a good portion of the subway system down in that area and commuter tunnels. what do you know about that? how long are we talking about a recovery process here? >> reporter: officials are saying if may take up to four days to pump out all of the water in the subway tunnels. that was another fear they had, is that that water would flood those tunnels.

also to make sure they pump out the water because of the switches and the seawater there that would harm some switches, the equipment. the chairman of the mta says that the subway system has never faced a disaster like the one we experienced last night in its 108-year history, terrell. >> ines ferre joining us from lower manhattan. thank you so much. the eye of hurricane sandy made landfall near atlantic city, new jersey, last night. the storm hammered the casinos with rain and massive storm surge. as walt hunter from our philadelphia station tells us, the mega storm damaged one of atlantic city's most famous sights. >> reporter: the storm grew more intense hour by hour into late afternoon. huge chunks of boardwalk ripped away by waves. some piling up, creating mini lumberyards on nearby flooded streets. winds and floodwaters driving

other pieces of the boardwalk like javelins into ga rojs and nearby homes, battering down doors. by late afternoon, the waves grew still higher, splashing 40 feet into the air, as the approaching high tide brought still more destruction. beyond the ocean's roar, surrounding streets were flooded and silent. making it impossible for anyone who stayed behind to leave. and much more ominously, making it extremely difficult for police or firefighters to reach anyone who needed emergency help. in atlantic city, i'm walt hunter for cbs news. >> when new jersey governor chris christie heard some residents were stranded on the barrier island, he blasted the mayor of atlantic city. christie said the mayor told people they could ride out the storm. that didn't sit well with the governor. >> once i signed that declaration of emergency, that

power is the power of the governorship. you have a mayor, a rogue mayor, telling his citizens it's okay not to leave. i don't know what you call that. i don't call it effective governance. >> the governor says rescuers will not be able to reach residents until some time this morning. sandy has grounded travelers all over the world. according to the flight tracking service flightaware, almost 14,000 flights have been canceled, around 8,000 flights monday and more than 5,500 today. it could take some travelers days to get to their final destination. sandy may be dying down but she's packing a wallop. right now she's about ten miles outside of philadelphia. sustained winds are at 75 miles an hour. "cbs this morning saturday" meteorologist lonnie quinn is tracking the storm. >> sandy is one of the strormest storms new york city and tri-state area has ever dealt with. in fact, a record-setter in terms of minimum central

pressure. it was a storm that brought huge surges in terms of tidal surges to our area. what is a storm surge? that's water that gets pushed onshore by strong winds. we set records across the board. water went where water should not go around new york city and tri-state area. engineer icy shore devastated. by the late of day we'll see some damage done out there. where is the storm right now? pushed inland and will make the trek deeper into new england before it makes another hard turn to the north. that's been a telltale sign of this storm. it just goes wherever it pleases. most of the time, very gradual turns, a storm will make in our atmosphere. this has been turning on a dime. it's very hard to forecast something like this because it's behaving so erratically. central pennsylvania, curve and go into upstate new york late wednesday into thursday. giving minimal effects to new york city by the time we get to wednesday morning.

for your day on tuesday for the new york city area, you've got to consider still to have some breezy conditions out there, gusting at times, winds 30 to 40 miles an hour but tidal surges will back down because you won't have as heavy winds pushing that water onshore. a better day today. still tough but better than what we had yesterday. >> and add snow to the big problems being caused by sandy. as much as 3 feet is expected to fall in the southern appalachian moun p mountains. almost 50,000 people are without power in western virginia. and the national guard is on weather service issued blizzard warnings for more than 14 counties across the appalachian mountains as hurricane sandy hit a blanket of cold air. west virginia's governor earl ray tomlin declared a state of emergency as the snow began to fall. >> don't want anyone to panic. at the same time, you should be prepared for the storm as it moves through the state. >> we're getting ready for the

winter storm, you know. >> reporter: the snowshoe mountain resort was one of the first to see the snow. 4 inches now could grow to a possible 2 feet by tomorrow. some roads are treacherous already. >> our friend's car doesn't have the greatest tires. they've spun around one time so i decided just to come get them. >> you'll do better? >> yes. >> you have a four-wheem drive? >> yes. >> reporter: travis ray is with the state's department of transportation. >> it will be very difficult. you know, there will be guys out there. midnight, in zero visibility conditions. they'll have to work. we have a very dependable work force. but, you know, they're not ideal conditions for people to be out in but we'll be out there to serve the public. >> reporter: the most critical problem here may be if the power goes out. companies are already warning the outages could be widespread, as trees buckle under the early snow and fall on power line. state officials say they expect the next 24 hours here to be the worst. the national guard is on standby

and extra power workers and highway workers have been brought in to cope with whatever damage the storm leaves behind. i'm anna werner, cbs news, west virginia. coming up, campaign washout. the race for the white house hits turbulence in the wake of hurricane sandy nz, as candidates scramble. severe rheumatoid arthritisero means living with pain. it could also mean living with joint damage. help relieve the pain and stop the damage with humira, adalimumab. for many adults with moderate to severe ra, humira is clinically proven to help relieve pain and stop joint damage. so you can treat more than just the pain. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal events, such as infections, lymphoma, or other types of cancer, have happened. blood, liver and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure have occurred. before starting humira, your doctor should test you for tb.

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search and rescue teams are going to be in place. >> reporter: the earliest the president could make it back to the campaign trail is wednesday. former president clinton is pinch-hitting in some key cities like orlando. >> i was supposed to be the warm-up man for president obama today. but that storm on the east coast had other ideas. >> reporter: polls show the presidential race too close to call, and the last full week of campaigning was supposed to be an all-out sprint for both candidates. instead, they're watching the weather. republican challenger mitt romney canceled his tuesday events and shortened monday events to two stops. >> sandy is a devastating hurricane by all accounts and a lot of people will be facing some real tough times as a result of sandy's fury. >> reporter: romney encouraged supporters at a rally in ohio to help storm centers. >> our victory center is collecting items and cash we can

send along to the red cross. >> reporter: four states that may decide the election are in the path of the storm. tara mergener, cbs news, washington. up next, your tuesday morning massive waves kicked up by hurricane sandy. w is plucked from massive waves kicked up by hurricane sandy. neutrogena® rapid wrinkle repair visibly reduces fine lines and wrinkles in just one week. why wait if you don't have to. neutrogena®.

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degrees. let's check your national forecast. sandy moves inland with hurricane-force winds with 4 to 8 inches of rain to the mid-atlantic states. in west virginia the storm will leave behind up to 3 feet of snow. the midwest may see wind, rain and snow. the northwest expect rain and snow in the higher elevations. weather in the southwest should be calm and comfortable. early this morning the coast guard said a woman had died after being rescued from the atlantic after she abandoned ship in rough waters churned up by hurricane sandy. the ship was used in "mutiny on the bounty." david martin has the dramatic rescue of its crew. >> reporter: dan todd was lowered into 18-foot seas 90 miles off the coast of north carolina. >> into the water. >> reporter: he swam to one of two life rafts. >> two people remaining in there. >> reporter: the three-masted ship "hms bounty" was sailing from connecticut to florida. when it floundered.

the coast guard located the life rafts by honing in on emergency beacons. what followed was the rescue and vessel pitching so violently, that at times they capsized. one after another the crew members, wearing cold water survival suits and life jackets, were pulled aboard in the wildly swinging cage. >> this one is swinging really bad. >> reporter: the swimmer remained in the water, waiting for the empty cage to be lowered for another rescue. at one point he moved from raft to another by dangling beneath the helicopter. >> i'm trying to stop the wind. i'm not swinging dan too much. >> no, no, i stopped him. i think i threw my shoulder out. >> reporter: as last survivor was hoisted aboard, the pilot was making plans to refuel as soon as they landed to head back out and search for two crew members still missing. >> let's just go to cherry point, drop some people off. get gas and come back. >> reporter: some survivors suffered injuries. the body of one of the two missing crewmen has been found. the captain of the "hms bounty" is still missing.

david martin, cbs news, washington. when we come back, another look at this morning's top stories. and the show must go on. letterman takes late night with no one there. takes late night with no one there. chili's lunch break combos start at just 6 bucks.

so ditch the brown bag for something better. like our bacon ranch quesadillas or big mouth burger bites, served with soup or salad, and fries. starting at just 6 bucks, at chili's. in any of our lifetimes. large parts of lower manhatn are sumbberged... millions are in the dark.... and at least 16 people are dead. across the country thousandf flights are grounded. with more cancelelations are expd today. and experts say damage estit could top 20 billion dollar. join us for cbs 5 eyewitness news this morning... beginng at 4:30. ,,,,

here's a look at the weather in some cities around the country. in d.c., tropical storm conditions, 50. very windy in atlanta, 56. partly sunny skies in st. louis, 57 degrees. denver, 68. occasional rain in seattle, 55 degrees. top stories on a tuesday. sandy struck the east coast hard. it's being blamed for at least 16 deaths. almost 6 million are without power. a record-breaking storm surge flooded lower manhattan and parts of west virginia could get 3 feet of snow. superstorm sandy slowed down the race for the white house with just one week before the election. president obama canceled events

for today. mitt romney will hold a rally in ohio, focusing on storm relief. for one late night talk show host, the show must go on, even when there's no audience. >> david letterman! ♪ >> david letterman didn't let sandy stop him from taping last night's "late show." much of his staff couldn't make it in but letterman soldiered on. >> let's run through some jokes, paul. i come out and i say, well, so much for the drought. that would -- >> that would have been a funny opener right there. >> it's a whole different perspective when you sit here and read them. >> you don't get any reaction. >> no, that's about right. >> "the late show's" executive producer tweeted that the show was, quote, bizarre and beautiful. kind of like how this broadcast is going. a lot of folks could literally not make it to the building. we'll have continuing coverage on the aftermath of hurricane

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>> sandy roared up the east coast leaving widespread destruction. the superstorm is blamed for 16 deaths in seven states. an estimated 5.7 million customers are without power and many could remain in the dark for a week or more. damage is projected to cost between $10 and $20 billion, making sandy one of the costliest natural disasters in u.s. history. nearly 14,000 flights have been canceled. maybe hard to believe but amid the damage and heartache brought on by hurricane sandy, there's some positive news to emerge from the disaster. richard schlesinger shows how the storm has resulted in some unexpected alliances. >> reporter: it's almost as though the nation's luck couldn't be any worse. meteorologically speaking, sandy has been called historic, a

perfect storm, a whopper. and for people from maine to delaware, new york to west virginia, it is a colossal multi-state pain in the atmosphere. but consider this -- could sandy, whose winds and rain and clouds are spreading such misery, have a silver lining? before the effects of near-record low pressures started stalking the northeast, everyone was focused on a near record low brow campaign, stalking washington. there's nothing like a potential cataclysm to remind us what civics classes are all about, what government is all about. keeping people safe from all threats, manmade or not. so, there was new jersey governor chris christie, so often the most partisan of republicans, acknowledging the help of the president, so often the object of christie's wrath.

>> i want to thank the president for his swift consideration of our request and his granting approval. >> reporter: it took a force of nature to make him say that. millions of americans are in harm's way right now, in imminent danger. looking for friends, neighbors and government to help them out. amidst the howling wind and crashing waves, at least the rhetoric quieted down. a week and a day before the election. the calm during the storm, unlike the storm itself, was welcomed, but just like sandy, it was in so many ways unprecedented. >> and we are not done with sandy yet. that was richard schlesinger reporting this morning. coming up after your local news on "cbs this morning," complete coverage of the aftermath of hurricane sandy. we'll get live reports on the east coast on the massive power outages. we'll here from governor chris christie of hard-hit new jersey and fema updates us on federal response to the disaster. team coverage of what's left of

hurricane sandy coming up a little later on "cbs this morning." for now, though, that will do it for the morning news for this tuesday. as always, appreciate you watching. i'm terrell brown on this very busy tuesday from new york city. take care, everybody. busy tuesday from new york city. take care, everybody. have a great day. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

>> your realtime captioner: linda marie macdonald super storm sandy roaring ashore and slams right into the east coast. what a night and now, all the clean-up. good morning, everyone. it's tuesday, october 30. i'm frank mallicoat. >> i'm michelle griego. time now just about 4:30. we are going to chec